Close Watch
by siriuslynicole
Summary: Cooper meets up with Brand on Edmunds' planet and the two finally let their guards down. They find that their connection is stronger than they ever thought possible.
1. Prologue

_Oh I'm sure / No harm will come to you no more / 'Cause I find myself in your hands / Don't you be so hard on yourself_

 _"Brand."_

Murph's feeble voice rang through Cooper's ears as if it were a song he couldn't get out of his head. He made his way to the hangar bay with TARS, replaying the scheme he and the machine procured to in order to get to Edmunds' planet. Had Cooper actually requested a ranger they would probably not be leaving for another few months, which was unfathomable for the man. He belonged in the boundless regions that were the cosmos, free from rules or restrictions. Plus, ever since his last expedition, Cooper treated time as preciously as any good man or woman would treat their spouse.

With so much on his mind he felt he was bound to mess up, though he kept telling himself otherwise. Years of training to become a pilot had taught him to stay level-headed. Very few things can go wrong if you're level-headed.

As Cooper and TARS rounded the last corner before reaching the hangar bay, Cooper held out his arm in front of the robot, as though to stop him. He grinded his teeth at the noisy maneuvering of his companion. "Remind me to get you some oil," he murmured, his words not that of a concerned friend but a frustrated accomplice.

"I can hear better than you, y'know. The maintenence guy just left through the door on the opposite side of the chamber," TARS replied.

Cooper thought he could almost feel the sass radiating from its metallic surface. Despite their obvious differences, the two balanced the other out.

"A little caution…" Cooper whispered, his words trailing off as he double checked the robot's assurance. His heart beat in his throat. If he were caught, the chances of him being able to sneak out again were slim.

"That sounds awfully familiar," TARS retorted, "Did the black hole mess up your caution synapses?"

Ignoring the mockery, Cooper entered a code into the keypad next to the hangar bay door and as it slid open, strode through with TARS at his heels. They started toward the ranger they both agreed on. The space suit he donned felt alien to him; it was far easier to operate in than the one he once used on the Endurance - so much so that a part of him worried if it were even safe to travel in. When he reached the ranger he gracefully slid inside of it, whereas his metal friend had no such luck.

"Seventy-two hours to Edmunds'," TARS repeated to Cooper once they were both settled in. The top of the ranger clicked shut and the bay opened up to the endless dark sky from which they were found not too long ago.

"You've got control of her, TARS. Wake me up three hours before landing."

"No need to repeat yourself. I heard you the first time twenty-six hours ago."

Cooper dialed a code into the LCD screen attached to the space-suit's arm. He was instantly greeted with the awful smell of gas filling his engineered exoskeleton. It would keep him asleep for the ride. In his increasingly drowsy state he proposed that he preferred this over the cryo-beds.

"Sleep tight, Coop," TARS wished its friend, although by that point nothing but the thin walls of the ranger and Cooper's sleeping body absorbed its words.


	2. Chapter 1: Sleeping Gas

**Wow. I am *SO* sorry that it took forever to post this. The next chapter will be posted soon, and I promise it will make up for any length this one lacks. I'm taking the time between class and schoolwork to give you an amazing story. Thank you for being patient!**

* * *

"Good morning, Coop."

Even though TARS had shut off the sleeping gas nearly three hours ago, its effect hadn't completely left Cooper. He shut his eyes and tried to shake the remaining drowsiness from his body. Every bone felt heavy, and his brain couldn't quite convince his muscles to lift them.

Upon re-opening his eyes, Cooper saw Edmunds' planet looming great and rusty in front of them. It looked promising, and he couldn't help but feel guilty for not trusting Amelia's intuition. Had they not gone to Mann's, however, TARS may never have transferred the quantum data to Murph - completely eliminating any chance of Plan A working. The Butterfly Effect.

Cooper glanced at his metallic friend from behind his shoulders. "How long until we land?"

"Three hours, just as you instructed," TARS replied. "No activity on the Endurance. Brand must be on the surface."

Cooper half-heartedly nodded, his mind too focused on their future destination. His imagination ran wild of what Amelia's reaction would be upon his arrival. For all she knew, Cooper was torn apart atom by atom from the space-warping tidal forces of Gargantua: a process known as spaghettification. He wished that the redshifted image of his ranger crossing the event horizon didn't haunt her as it would have haunted him had he been in her position. He didn't mean to cause her any pain.

"It will be nice to see Dr Brand and CASE again," TARS said.

"And to meet Edmunds," Cooper added.

The rest of the trip was devoid of any superfluous conversation.


	3. Chapter 2: Contact

**Thank you for all your reviews and kind words! They mean so much to me, and I'm glad I can keep some of you interested!**

* * *

With a thud the ranger landed on the surface, just short of sixty meters from Edmunds' and Brand's landing site. Despite the compound and tents scattering the surface, the planet still felt barren, littered with dusty rocks and framed with large mountains toward the eastern horizon. An American flag fluttered gently in the wind. Cooper took off his helmet and let the fresh air enter his lungs.

"Look at that sky, TARS. Blue skies and clouds."

TARS swivelled around but said nothing.

Cooper smiled, although it felt forced. "I never thought I'd see it again. Let's get going."

TARS continued his silence, busy collecting data. The clouds became less and less of a distraction for Cooper with each step toward Amelia's compound. When TARS caught up to him, he figured it was time. It was better to let Amelia know sooner than later about their arrival. He took his communication device out and held it up to his mouth, pressing a button on the side. He frowned to himself before speaking, unsure of what to say. "Amelia Brand, do you read me?"

There was a pause. Cooper stopped walking, and the mechanical squeak of TARS' maneuvering ceased. Even the American flag off in the distance seemed to wait in anticipation.

Seconds passed, and then minutes. The silence was interrupted by TARS turning his body to Cooper, as if to say, "what now"?

"She could be in cryo sleep," Cooper said, taking such long strides that it made it hard for TARS to keep up. She couldn't be dead, Cooper thought, but he still felt the effects of anxiety as it raced his heart and made his stomach turn. His mind was made less at ease when he saw what used to be Edmund's compound, crushed by rock and deteriorated by time. Amelia must have held a little memorial service for him. The nameplate that was once attached to the metal exterior of his shelter was placed neatly amid the rocks.

"That must've been hard on Dr. Brand," TARS said, after they passed the wreckage. They were only about fifty feet from Amelia's location when Cooper began to run.

"C'mon, TARS. No sense in taking our time."

The robot sighed.

When he reached Amelia's compound, he gripped the door latch and pulled it counterclockwise. When the lock clicked open, he hesitated before pulling the door open. TARS nudged him forward.

The interior of Brand's compound matched the stillness of outside. Cooper's heart dropped. He half expected Amelia to be there, awake and shocked by his arrival.

"Looks like she's in cryo sleep," TARS said, looming over the bed.

Cooper felt déjà vu as he walked over to where she lay. Taking his glove off, he grasped the handle. He couldn't help but remember Dr. Mann's response to being woken up, how the legendary scientist clung onto Cooper with such desperation. Would Amelia do the same?

He turned the handle, releasing it as the cover started to open, revealing a sleeping Dr. Brand. The clear water inside the bed gently rippled and reflected the bright light from inside the compound, hiding three quarters of her face at any given moment. From what he could tell, she looked no different than when he last saw her. A loud hiss came from the cover as it locked into place.

She couldn't have been asleep for too long, he concluded. This bed was different than Mann's; there was no bag to rip open this time. He positioned his hand gently under Amelia's neck to help prop her up and released pressure as she sat up, coughing water from her lungs.

She looked around the room, disoriented, and saw Cooper standing there with a concerned look on his face. He had not aged.

"Cooper?" she said, her voice barely audible from both her coughing and her disbelief. Was this a dream? Was she staring at a ghost?

"I'm here, Brand."

She started to cry.


End file.
